Afraid I'm pregnant with copper IUD

[songbird717]

I had a stomach bug or maybe food poisoning on Sunday and Monday...nausea, vomiting (just one time per day), no fever but really really bad chills, shivering, paleness, body aches, the whole deal! My husband made the joking comment "are you sure you aren't pregnant?" and then my mind went wild! He really should know better than to bring things like that up! On the third day, I felt a million times better, went out and did errands etc, but still had a little lingering nausea all day long. It wasn't bad enough to keep me from eating, I just felt a little off and my mouth was really watery. I kept questioning how bad did I actually feel? Was I imagining the nausea because I was worried about pregnancy or was it really happening. I still felt it yesterday and today it's pretty much gone...my mouth still has a watery feel when I think about it, but I keep finding other things to support my fear that I could be pregnant.

I have been on the copper IUD since October. I had it checked by my doctor just last week and she said it is perfectly in place. It is a very effective form of BC but as with anything, there is always a small chance of pregnancy. In this situation, it is about 1%. But I made the mistake of googling (I know!) and there are lots of women out there who have gotten pregnant with the IUD in place.

Also, I'm having cramping and spotting. My period should be coming in about 8 days so this could be PMS cramps and spotting (it's a little earlier than usual for me to start with PMS but it's not uncommon for me to have spotting or to have cramps early) or it's implantation cramps/spotting, which according to google feel the same as PMS related and happen around the same time!!! I made the mistake of reading about these things and now I can't even tell what I'm actually feeling and what I'm imagining? Do I feel more cramping on one side? I don't know! At least I do know that my breasts aren't sensative or tender. I am a little more tired than usual, but that could be getting over the virus or just being so anxious!

I haven't had pregnancy anxiety for a long time. I felt confident in the IUD, and now I don't know!

Getting pregnant wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, I'm happily married and eventually want kids, but it's stressing me out A LOT because my career is just starting to take off (I'm a performer and pregnancy would offer some major issues with some of the engagement I have coming up), and there are a lot of other major life changes going on now. I just don't feel ready and it's freaking me out!

The thing I hate is that my life is really pretty great and my anxiety finds a way to get in there and ruin the times that I could be enjoying all the things that are going well. It really consumes me and I'm less productive and really worried all the time. I talked to my therapist today and felt a lot better, but I can't get my mind off of it!

[justina]

Hi!

I am sure you are not pregnant! A stomach bug can give you nausea for a week, and if you were pregnant you would most probably not have symptoms as early as more than 8 days before your expected period. And the symptoms are not chills and body ache.
You do not need to worry for sure!

[songbird717]

:bighug1:Thank you Justina. I'm sure you are right and it feels good to have some reassurance with problems in the timeline. As much as I consider myself to be an educated grown woman who knows how her reproductive organs work, pregnancy is still somewhat of a mystery in terms of timing. I find the women who know most about it have learned so while they were trying to get pregnant. Then again, the internet is full of forums for women who are trying to conceive and they are all trying to convince themselves and each other that every little sensation is a sign of pregnancy :shrug:

I think the bigger issue is that I really don't want anxiety to hijack my life anymore. I went for about 4 months without any imagined diseases or anxiety about my health and then my close friend being diagnosed with thyroid cancer triggered things again. She had a very successful operation and she will be fine, but when we see things like that in a young person especially, it really reminds us that we have no control of what happens in the world. I think that's really what HA is about. We know we have no control and we think that if we can be ahead of every possible thing and prepare for the worst, when something happens we will have some sort of control in a perverse way. Like I think the IUD gives me control over when I get pregnant, but since we can never have total control over anything in life, I feel the need to worry about that less than 1% chance so if it happens, I'll have gotten the freaking out over with and I'll be prepared. Pretty messed up!

As much as I'm sure I am not pregnant, (as per constant advice of my therapist) I'm trying to remind myself that I am a resilient person, and even if things don't always go according to planned, I am strong enough to deal with them no matter what happens. Yes, my husband and I didn't plan for kids right at this very moment, but if it's something that happens, we will adapt to the situation at hand. It's harder to think of sickness this way, but even with the worst sicknesses, usually it's not the end of the world and it can even lead to good things. My dad had cancer about 7 years ago and it was scary, but he got though it and it changed the way he viewed life. He doesn't take it for granted and he doesn't put up with things that don't make him happy. He was never a runner but decided to start running marathons with my mom and since the cancer, they have both run 2 marathons together in their mid 50's and they spend tons of time together doing things that they both enjoy. It's very sweet to see!

I loved the stickies posted about managing HA and even if I might post a few HA worries, my goal is to be a positive force on this forum.